>> sunday night at 8:00 p.m. eastern, 2017 commencement speeches. this weekend, speakers includes senator kamala harris at howard university in washington, d.c., education secretary c devos at cookman of beach, florida. eileen drake at university of alabama in huntsville. executive chairman of starbucks howard schultz at arizona state university, tempe. senator elizabeth warren at university of massachusetts, amherst and senator rob portman at ashland university in ohio. tonight at 8:00 p.m. eastern on c-span and c-span.org. now defense secretary james mattis and joints chiefs of staff chair general joseph dunford on the u.s. effort to combat isis. this is just under one hour.

>> good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. i returned last week from a meeting in copenhagen with i returned last week from a withng in copenhagen ministers of defense from 14 nations to coordinate our political way ahead in the defeat isis campaign. chairman dunford returned yesterday from achieved of -- a chief of defense meeting in brussels with 28 nato nations plus his counterparts from a nations andonal they discussed the military aspects of that campaign. trump'srk, president special envoy and final state permit leader to the coalition to counter isis returned a few hours ago from his trip to syria , iraq, and jordan to does this was our first opportunity to get together. which of events of that for this conference. today is a good day to describe what has happened. president trump directed the department of defense to lead al departments in

comprehensive review. we submit that report and after his review, he then ordered an accelerated operation against isis. what does that mean question --? two significant changes resulted. first, he delegated authority to the right level to aggressively -- in a timely matter matter, move against vulnerabilities. he directed a tactical shift drum serving isis out of locations in an attrition fight to surrounding the enemy in their strongholds so we can annihilate isis. the intent is to prevent a return home of escaped foreign fighters.

isis nervously endangering innocent lives by refusing to allow civilians to alluate and we continue possible efforts to protect the innocent, you are aware of the human costs isis has exacted, killed, wounded refugees, merciless control over those regions, they hold the cost to turkey, jordan, and lebanon as syrians and iraqis have been displaced. maliciouse to isis' and unforgivable treatment the world has responded. this is a coalition effort. since this began in 2014, the coalition has extract -- has strengthened and expanded. the international team is fully committed at the political and military levels to the destruction of isis. a coalition with 68 members, 65 nations with more joining as we speak, plus interpol, the european union and arab league united in opposition.

sharing intelligence providing troops and funds for combat and no less importance for the post-combat recovery. in late march, our secretary of state gathered colleagues in washington where they discussed how we would deal with the post-combat after math. secretary tillerson and mr. mcgurk focused their efforts on how this afteraged region can recover after we free it. 26 of our coalition nations contribute militarily, including more than 4,000 non-u.s. troops on the ground and in the air. our recent coalition meetings in brussels, copen hagen reflect a campaign among contributing nations. partnering with the iraqi security forces in iraq and the counter-isis forces in syria. what have we achieved.

we have fought isis elements from southeast asia to africa and collaboration among many nations and intelligence services blunt isis after they conduct attacks against the united states and our allies to centralized directed plots but also to inspired attacks. from the phillipines to europe and beyond, while isis remains dangerous, they are no longer carrying an air of strength. in afghanistan two weeks ago, the president announced he killed the leader of the isis and 2/3 of their strength been killed during very tough operations mostly in a province. france has led a two-year ongoing campaign in the west africa with 4,000 of their troops on the ground to support our african allies.

in libya, we struck a significant isis presence there in january of this year. our attack against our concentrated strength was highly effective and isis did not own any major territory any longer there. elsewhere from, there have been successes. in iraq and syria, lies the core area of isis. recent attacks in istanbul, paris and brussels were planned out of isis so-called capital. additional threats to many nations require us to move against strongholds in their hands. east mosul has fallen after tough fighting with u.s. and coalition support. since january, it is returning to get to normal and cleanup is under way and kids back in school. west mosul, in accordance were

tactics changed by president trump are in a stiff fight. there is no escape for isis while we do all that is human possible to shep hard the innocent. tella far is surrounded and other pockets of isis exist elsewhere in other provinces of an bar province. we will continue to fully support the iraqi forces and isolating and destroying isis throughout iraq. in syria, we support syrian democratic forces that recently seized mandates and have taken a province vince and attacking to isolate raqqa. they have additional strengths scattered down to the iraq border. we will not stop until they are

destroyed. i want our chairman, general dunford and mr. mcgurk to provide more details. we are leading a comprehensive international campaign to crush isis' claim of instability -- invincibility. to deny isis a geographic haven from which to hatch murder and isolate them to operate ex ternly and recruit and finance illegal operations. thanks to the spirit of dozens of nations committed to this fight, thanks to the nations whose troops have gone foe to to toe and those who have lost sons and daughters and debatest -- and deepest respect to the families caught up on the battlefields that are humanitarian fields, we have overtaken 55% of isis territory.

over 4 million people have been liberated and not one inch of territory has been recaptured from bsh by them. let me turn it over to them for more specifics. chairman. general dunford: thanks for the opportunity to join secretary mattis and mr. mcgurk to update you. as secretary mattis, our approach has brought significant progress. we reduced isis territory and freedom of movement and destroyed a great deal of their leadership and reduced the foreign fighters into and from the region, diminished their financial shal resources and undermined the credibility that there is a physical caliphate in iraq and syria. the secretary spoke about the gains of the coalition. coalition air strikes and ground

operations have struck prosecuting 2,600 isis-held gas and oil targets and that resulted in isis having the lowest revenue since 2014. the coalition has removed key isis leaders. they have limited their ability to plan attacks and broadcast their narrative and fund their brand of terror. in iraq, we partner with the iraqi security forces. they are providing equipment and intelligence conducting air strikes and advising military leaders. important to emphasize the fighting has been done by iraqi forces and performed miraculously. -- remarkably. they suffered 980 killed and 6000 wounded. and i would comment in addition to the competence they have demonstrated in mosul and the sacrifice, the one thing i have seen back and forth visiting iraq is the confidence of the

iraqi leadership. some of you acopped me. and it's very clear when you go over there and who is in charge and level of confidence and the commanders abuilt to lead and soldiers to fight is remarkable. in syria, working along side our turkish allies we cleared isis stemming the flow of money to isis' front lines. foreign fighter flow in iraq with 1,500 fighters. and we estimate those numbers are less than 100 per month. syrian democratic forces are completing it in raqqa. the planning and directing operations such as the attacks in paris and berlin. we are taking the fight to isis attacking their affiliates and

any groups that claim allegiance. isis is a transregional threat and we have a global approach. my recent meeting in nato and one of many meetings we have. i'm working with 60 of my counterparts to expand the plan. our priority is to prevent attacks against the homeland. our strategic approach is to cut it and that is the foreign fighter flee. our objective is to drive down isis' capability where support is able to provide security and we are doing this today in libya, somalia yemen and afghanistan. the president directed us to find ways to accelerate the campaign and identified opportunities to do that.

for example we recommended to the secretary and president trump and approved the decision to equip the syrian democratic forces earlier this week, a decision to allow our advisers to accompany down to the batallion level where our proximity to iraqi partners has enabled us to provide better support and we will look for opportunities to accelerate the campaign in the future. before i take questions, the progress we made today is a reflection of the competence of our men and women in uniform, our diplomats and we have a strong coalition and brave partners on the ground. i mentioned the iraqi and syrian sacrifices. we should reflect on the sacrifices of young americans, most recently lieutenant weston lee in iraq, and senior chief kyle millikan in somalia. thank you.

i will be followed by special envoy mcgurk. mr. mcgurk: thank you for the opportunity to describe how our diplomatic efforts are working to destroy isis and ensure it cannot return. secretary and chairman just mentioned they destroyed territory to coalition-backed forces. and isis has retaken none of that ground. the reason for that record, our close cooperation between the departments and agencies between the global coalition of 68 members and supporting partners have influenced capacity on the ground. i returned from the region this morning and met some of the brave syrians and iraqis who are living under the terror of isis. coalition-unabled operations have freed people. this is a remarkable record and now working to accelerate these effects with pressure on the

capital of raqqa. during my recent trip, i witnessed how our diplomats are integrated to fulfill president trump's charge to destroy isis. i wish all the american people could see our men and women in uniform are doing with our diplomats. secretary tillerson hosted our 68 members, he was joined throughout parts of the day by secretary mattis and director pompeo and other representatives from across our interagencieses. this demonstrated our united whole of government approach. such cooperation is to suffocate isis' propaganda. to give you some examples. before partner first laumpts a

military operation we do work at the local levels to set conditions for stability after isis. mosul was the central example of this where we have seen unprecedented cooperation between the forces working together, fighting together and taking casualties together. this cooperation has enabled closer participation to help return people to their homes after the battles are won through an innovative post-conflict approach empowering people to restore life to their communities. and we call it stabilization and it is one of the primary focuses led by germany, e.u., and other key contributors. stabilization is not nation building and not dictating political outcomes nor is it long-term reconstruction where projects are chosen.

costing and wasting billions of dollars. stabilization is a low cost, sustain able, citizen-driven effort to identify the key projects to return people to their home, such as grain silos and local security structures, local police. the isis plants explosives and it has been a critical focus of our coalition. iraqis train by our coalition and 34 tons of explosive material. following demining, local workers, syrns to restore key facilities and enable them to return. this is not glamorous work but it is work. 1.7 million iraqis are now back in their homes no longer displaced, no longer refugees

seeking to flee. that is unprecedented in a conflict of this nature and we give credit to those who stabilized local areas and return local pop sayings. in mosul, the battle is not over and approaching its final stages and the the forces supported by our coalition. there are tactics as shields to hold onto the territory. in areas of the city that have been cleared, life is starting to return thanks in no small measure to the stabilization projects that have been supported by our coalition by the united nations and iraqi governments. i visited one of these, a water treatment plant that has been destroyed by isis and it has been demined and restored by local workers and is now pumping fresh water to 100,000 homes. 116,000 displaced have been gone

home. raqqa used the same model. local leaders are organizing for the day after isis and working with syrians and identified hundreds of critical sites. after isis, we will support the demining of those facilities and relying on local workers who know the area and how things get done. the raqqa campaign will take time. after the battle, local people from t area should be in charge of their city and enable life return to the streets and invite people to return. a few days ago, i met a local arab leader just west of raqqa and described to us the thousands of foreign fighters who terrorized his community enslaved women and committing

public executions and he believes most of these foreign fighters are now dead and working to organize demining initiatives and that the streets are safe and that the local people to restore their community. raqqa will be no different. syria is more difficult. we have no leader. and we require more from the international community. when secretary tillerson called on the coalition, he received $2.6 billion, which is now being spent. more will be required from our coalition and we'll look for our partners to maintain at least three-quarters of stabilization support for every u.s. dollar. the battle for raqqa is making the area safer.

and president trump will have the opportunity on march 25 to discuss these initiatives with our nato partners all of whom are members of our coalition. very briefly, other nonmilitary elements include counterfinance, countermessaging. no matter if you recruit for isis or distribute, the global net is closing in. the newest member of our coalition is interpol. more than 60 countries are building a global data base. that deata base had only 40 people and now is 14,000 and continues to grow. we are working as a united team at president trump's direction to destroy isis and protect our homeland and the record is encouraging. 60,000 kilometers is recovered. all of it is held. 4.1 million people freed, 1.7 million iraqiees returned to their homes.

and finance is down to the lowest level. foreign fighters unable to travel to syria and those in syria are more than likely to die there. the threat will not end with the battles in mosul and raqqa but the end of the caliphate is coming into sight. the pressure has only started and we will work together as a united team to do everything we can to defeat isis and make sure they can never return to areas we retake. >> is an international coalition. fighting been tough and they are still dangerous and it is not going to be over soon but we are going to continue to press. with that, can we take

questions? described to changes the president made in the approach. one was a tactical shift having to do with surrounding isis in their stronghold. i wonder if you could explain the significance of that and say how will that apply to the coming fight in the river valley? and in the same vein, same area, the government said they are going to reassert their authority out in that direction and if they are going to challenge opposition forces in the south, and i'm wondering the russian support for them, how will you navigate that sort of battleground without getting further embroiled in a civil war? ms. matsui: navigating this battleground is challenging. we deconflict with russia and

have an open line with them that is used constantly. if i were to talk to the tactic, because they actually impact your second question, by taking the time upfront to surround these locations instead of simply shoving them from one to another and actually reinforcing them as they fall back, based on the recommendation made and the direction that president trump took, we now take the time to surround them. and why do we do it? because the foreign fighters are the strategic threat should they return home to tuning is, to paris, to detroit, wherever, those foreign fighters are a threat. by taking the time to deconflict, to surround and to then attack, we carry out the campaign so we don't transplant this problem from one location to another.

and that's the approach we take that basically threads the needle on a very complex battlefield. reporter: how are you going to fight that out in the valley? secretary mattis: i'll leave it out to the generals. we don't direct that from here. the foreign fighters do not get out. i leave it to their skill, their cunning to carry that out. reporter: a follow-up on that. you said we will not stop down raqqa. you have syrian troops located there and some small numbers are still moving that way and then to the west which air strikes hit shia militias. and so given those two areas, are you worried about them continuing to be a place where the militias and the russians

will continue to strike? and what do you do as you head down the river valley? do you bypass them? you said you will never work with the assad regime. how do you goal with the troops there? general dunford: we are precluded by law from coordinating with the russians. having said that, we have worked very hard to deconflict our operations and the primary purpose is to ensure the safety and allow us to continue the campaign. i'm confident that we have made progress over the last couple of months. i spoke to my counterpart, russian counterpart as recently as last night and we work through the deconfliction and the direct communication i have, we opened a channel with rj-5 communicates with his

counterpart in moscow and we have a pretty robust operational link on the ground from our combined center and we are looking for the russians to work with the regime to deconflict our operations. what you are highlighting is a fair point is the ground is becoming complex and constrained. but to date, we have been able to deconflict operations. we have a proposal that we are working with the operations right now and won't share the details, but my sense is that the russians are as enthusiastic as we are to deconflict operations and take the campaign to isis. reporter: the proposal deal with the city? general dunford: it will. it will. so we have done that. reporter: you talked about deconfliction, what didn't work yesterday or the day before when you called the russians, you had to strike them.

general dunford: that was a force protection strike. we have gone back and had a conversation at every level now to ensure those instruments don't take place again. last night, i made a commitment that they wouldn't happen again if our forces weren't threatened. that's what is going to prevent it in the future. reporter: i would like to ask the two veterans of the obama administration, to hold off on the turks and the trump administration made that administration, would that have any effect on delaying the assault on raqqa? general dunford: it did not. one of the pre-conditions for seizing raqqa was the isolation of raqqa, which included recently completed a very

difficult fight, and i think you are familiar with that, where the syrian democratic forces had 100 killed in that battle alone. we are at the point where the seizure of raqqa would have taken place. it has not delayed the seizure of raqqa. the only delay was in our providing equipment to the syrian democratic forces so they could go into the fight. we were prepared for this decision and stockpiled equipment in the event that president trump made the decision he did and we were able to field that equipment to the forces without a delay in seizing raqqa. reporter: let me follow up. former administration officials have said at the time in january when this decision was made, the opinion of both the joint staff and centcom was that the syrian democratic forces would be ready

to begin the assault on raqqa in mid-february. and here we are in mid-may. secretary mattis: let me just say that any time lines that are given in wartime should be taken with a degree of skepticism. we will try to brief you and give you an idea of operations, but are dealing with a fundamentally unpredictable situation. there has been no delay in the effort to do that other than the normal vagaries of the battlefield where an enemy is trying to defeat us. so far they have been defeated by the s.d.f. in every single battle, but it has been a very tough fight.

so they were not able to move quickly on the attack on raqqa for purely tactical and battlefield reasons. reporter: you started arming the s.d.f. general dunford: if i did, i misspoke. we are prepared to do that. to my knowledge, it should happen very soon. reporter: could you answer the question about the fallout or any fallout with turkey. and i would like to address this, too? general dunford: first and foremost, we have gone in that turkey is an important alley and we are going to protect that. as a result, i have gone to turkey nine times this year and met with my counterpart 15 times this year to make sure we maintain a very close relationship. we did have a different perspective on the best way to seize raqqa and the only option was with the s.d.f. and we have

taken measures on the ground to mitigate their concerns. and we have taken steps to make sure the turks have transparency on what we're doing and measures to take place that the equipment we are providing to the s.d.f. is appropriate only for appropriations in raqqa. reporter: mr. mcgurk? mr. mcgurk: i have been to turkey more than any other country. we cannot defeat isis without turkey and i consult with our colleagues there all the time. there are talks right now in the geneva about the political way ahead. and there is a military campaign

that is the track in a complex situation and something we are coordinated with. and the post-raqqa phase, stabilization and we will be coordinating with turkey. we can't do this without turkey and we work with them every single day. we have some differences, but they are close allies. reporter: the turkish foreign minister was on the record -- mr. mcgurk: but i have great respect for the foreign minister and great colleague and look for that relationship to continue. reporter: one for you, mr. secretary and the latest north korean launch, it was more successful than anything they have done so far and went to a high altitude. my question to you. how has this missile launch impacted your thinking, your assessment about the north korean missile threat.

and if i may, mr. chairman, a separate question for you, on counterterrorism operations, you described it putting u.s. forces putting them out front and saw it in somalia and sadly with the navy sale killed. seems like they are no longer behind. so talk to us if you can why counterterrorism forces are more out there and face the risk doing that. secretary mattis: i want to talk about the counterisis fight. on north korea, we are aware of the provocativactions they have taken and cautions given them by nations around the world that clearly aren't listening but there appears to be some impact by the chinese working here. it's not obviously perfect when

they launch a missile which you described about going higher and re-entry capability, that sort of thing. but at the same time, we are going to continue to breathe the same kind of pressure that we have been trying to. we are going to continue to work the issue. as you know, if this goes to a military solution, it is going to be tragic on an unbelievable scale, and so our effort is to work with the u.n., work with china, work with japan, work with south korea to find a way out of this situation and we press on. there's many different efforts under way. we have a whole government approach to this as well. i spent as much time as i do with the secretary of treasury and secretary of state as we try to sustain a policy going forward. general dunford: we haven't changed the prod guidance to our forces that are working with partners on the ground.

they don't actually close with the enemy. specific case i mentioned was we in the past have been partnering and advising at the brigade level in iraq. because of the complex terrain inside the city of mosul, the commander felt it didn't allow them to provide the kind of advice and combined armed support necessary. we allowed them to support at the battalion level. it doesn't change that they would be at the last cover and conceal position and not one closing with the enemy. we conduct partnered operations. it is the partners who are closing with and destroying the enemy. reporter: in somalia, those were killed. the department publicly said that he and his teammates were along side the somali forces.

>> when you are on patrol, you can't always be in a safe position. the lads know they aren't part of a life insurance corporation and they train for this and go out and do the best job. i'm confident our military forces are carrying out the intent, the partnered forces want to do but they need our support in doing. so thank you. reporter: you said this made provocative actions and tests by the united states on may 3 and april 26. one of them traveled over 6,000 kilometers across the ocean. can you confirm any of these icbm missile tests. who's going to be paying for the government in raqqa and the security forces in raqqa?

>> folks will be involved in the raqqa operation in the post-raqqa phase. we routinely test the icbm in accordance with international protocols and the regimes that are part of those international protocols. it would not be provocative to north korea. for north korea to compare what they have been doing to threatening and intimidating neighbors as well as the u.s. to our routine military exercises advertised well in advance with full transparency would be an unfair comparison. >> that is a great question. when you talk to folks will be involved in the raqqa operation

in the post-raqqa phase. unanimously, no one wants the regime to come back. and in terms of administrative services, teachers, hospitals, who pays for those salaries, that is something where syrians are going to have to work that out. we are not in the business of as i said nation building operations. and as you lift the lid, you see a lot of this happening even where the opposition controls. teacher salaries, basic worker salaries paid by the government. these are things that have to be worked out. what is they are unanimous, no return of the regime. they may tend -- they mentioned this reflects reality. and the reconstruction costs of syria are so high on multiple billions of dollars and unlike iraq where there is a legitimate government with full global support, the u.n. is on the ground, you have huge outpouring

of international support to help these communities recover. until there is a credible political horizon, the international community is not going to come to the aid. these areas have been destroyed based upon the barbaric tactics they used. unless we find a credible political horizon, you won't see the international support pour in. so there is a lot of work to do here and we will be doing it in parallel with the military. reporter: following this, the assad government is going to be paying the bills, won't the u.s. and allies be forced to work along side him or are you saying that raqqa will not be reconstructed until assad has left? >> we are prepared to do stabilization.

give you a perfect example. one of the most strategic sites in syria. it is seized and controlled by isis and syrian democratic forces. we are demining it. and local forces, local workers and getting the workers back to the dam. there is no regime presence there whatsoever. but in terms of these overall relationships within syria, it is more complex than most realize and look at what is going on. that will be worked out. but the battle for raqqa has some time to go. and working on the diplomatic aspects of it. reporter: secretary mattis, you mentioned the annihilation of isis.

how do we know that has occurred given that there is going to be a resideal threat from this group. in those countries. and you mentioned the threats from isis, does that mean the american public should expect a long-term presence? secretary mattis: this threat is a long-term threat. that is why so many nations have signed up. you don't see a coalition this size if it's some short-term threat or a small regional threat, this is a transnational long-term threat. we will move against other concentration of forces. you say what will it look like when we say we've got success? what we will see is the local security forces, police, that sort of organization can handle it. we drive them down to a point where the locals can handle that and no longer a transregional, transnational threat. so you have to drive them down

to a threat where police can handle. police can't drive artillery or thousands of fighters in mobile vehicles that allow them to go far and wide. you have them -- to drive them down to a point where police elements can handle it. reporter: expectations from the american troop presence. should americans expect they should be there in years to come? secretary mattis: i'm not willing to say that. i am not willing to sign up for that. that's not our intent. we're there to drive isis to its knees and as mr. mcgurk pointed out, there has to be a political solution to the larger issues and not with u.s. troops. at the point of a gun making that happen. jennifer. reporter: have you made any recommendations on more u.s. troops to afghanistan and has a decision been made how many more troops will be going to afghanistan and separately, did

president trump when he met with the russians in the oval office, did he share classified information? has that strained any relationships with the foreign intelligence? secretary mattis: i have not made a recommendation yet. i have gone to afghanistan and met with the president and nato representatives and our commander in the field. i have also been in brussels and also on the side in copenhagen and talked with my counterparts there to collect allied input and that recommendation is being put together by the chairman and myself. and i expect it will go to a decision very, very soon. but no, it has not been made yet. reporter: what about the conversation in the oval office? secretary mattis: i was not there and i know what i have read in the newspaper. i will tire you this, i have not been asked, this week alone i , have been on the phone with or hosted here in washington either nine or 11, i'm losing track of

time, nine or 11 fortunate -- foreign counterparts or spoken with secretary general on the phone and the issue has never come up. reporter: quick follow-up. general, when you said you have been quickly field to that, what did you mean about that? general dunford: i misspoke and what i meant to say, we had stockpiled equipment and quickly -- we are prepared to quickly field it to the s.d.f. and haven't provided it to the s.d.f. and that is small arms, ammunition and equipment that will deal with the i.e.d. threat. so we haven't started to provide that equipment to the syrian democratic forces. over the last couple of months, in anticipation of that decision, or we are providing support, even if it wasn't the s.d.f., we will have stockpiled equipment and issue that out.

we will quickly transition as they finish the isolation of isis and take the president's decision and get that equipment to the s.d.f. thanks for the chance to clarify that. reporter: were you confirming that the north korean missile launch did have a controlled re-entry back into the atmosphere? secretary mattis: when it came down from that altitude, they probably learned a lot from it, but i'm not characterizing it from it that now. reporter: are you confirming that the obama administration had made the decision to arm to one of your earlier questions and no one answered it. can you confirm? >> that decision was made by president trump. secretary mattis: let's go to the back row. i'm hitting everyone up front.

secretary mattis: i saw your tie earlier. >> something that is going to accelerate time lines or going to be more force requirements needed or delay time lines and will potentially because it is such a force generator, will it require the more trainers and support? secretary mattis: it is a change in tactics that we now surround these locations, these concentrations of enemy. any indication of a time line, i don't put time lines on forces in the field. they know what the mission is. they do what their professional judgment tells them is possible and what reality delivers to them in terms of a cunning enemy on the battlefield. that is proven because they have lost every battle since the

coalition has engaged them. we will continue that tactic. it does not i think relate to a longer campaign. there may be tactical incidents that take longer and i defer to the chairman. the foreign fighters don't get out or is greatly reduced in numbers to pray their hate and -- to bring their hate and discontent back. general dunford: i want to come back to the s.d.f., it occurs to me there may be a misunderstanding. there is a kurdish component and arab component of the s.d.f. we have been providing equipment, weapons to the arab component for some months. the decision that president trump made was to provide equipment to the kurdish component of the syrian

democratic forces. it's clear in my mind and make sure it was clear in yours. [indiscernible] >> i want to go back to the operations that took place yesterday. could you confirm that the militias with iranians and hezbollah and do you see any interest of the u.s. and the coalition to control the whole syrian-iraqi border. secretary mattis: the force that moved? is that what you are referring to? that was self defense of our forces. it was necessitated served by offensive movement with offensive capability of what we believe were iranian -- i don't know there were iranians on the ground, but by iranian-directed

forces around a deconfliction zone. we believe they moved into that zone against the advice of the russians. i can't confirm that but looks like the russians tried to dissuade them. reporter: is this a major change or extension of what has been happening already? secretary mattis: what are you referring to? reporter: what is new on the ground, the delegation of authorities, the decision to do surrounding operations. because president trump campaigned on the idea that the isis war wasn't working under obama, there was going to be a

major change and firing generals and here we are now with your comments. is this a major difference or ar natural progression of what should have happened any way? secretary mattis: i'm not quite sure your question. i explained to you, we went to him with the situation as we saw it. the suggested changes. he discussed these changes with us, with whole of government, not just the department of defense and we made the decision. we took the decision and executed for an ack -- accelerated campaign and all of the ramifications and implications and those are the changes going forward. the campaign designed end state remains the same, to destroy isis, but no longer will we have slowed decision cycles because washington, d.c. has to authorize tactical movements on the ground. i have absolute confidence as does the president, our

commander in chief by delegating this authority to me to further delegate it and they have carried it out aggressively. reporter: i would like to follow up about iranian aspect of this. are you concerned say in iraq that certain armed units have arisen in all its fighting whether it's -- or the p.k.k. forces that the situation has allowed these armed groups to emerge and control afterwards? secretary mattis: the iranian regime has been unhelpful. as you all know some years ago when the syrian people rose up against assad, they would have been successful except for the iranian reinforcements' full support for assad. that's the reason he was able to

withstand that difficult time and be still in position now. so iran's activities have not been helpful. they have been hurtful and extended a war that should have ended long ago. i have been a lot of refugee camps over my ears on active duty from the dalmation coast and seen people pulled out of the water in vietnam, i have never seen refugees as traumatized than syria. and iran bears responsibility for that situation. reporter: under president trump's administration, 55,000 or 60,000 square kilometers have been freed up and 1.7 million refugees. you are building on and actually improved on?

you gave me the impression rightly or wrongly that this has happened since trump took office? >> the delegations of authority which has made a difference in terms of the speed of execution. i think -- i defer to chairman dunford. our people surprised isis and surprised them from behind and seized the airport, dam and the town and it happened very fast and able to take advantage of moving the situation on the ground. so i think the speed of execution is significantly -- the delegations have made a difference. but the numbers and the data are aggregate. >> thank you all very much. >> we'll take one more question here. ladies and gentlemen, let be very clear about this, we were

talking about the campaign since 2014 and that's what we are talking about and you know that isis was on the attack and had the initiative. they were shattering every force in their path. it has reversed. we have accelerated. and i was not saying it all started with us. we continued and there has been a lot of countries in this for a long time and keep right at it. we have changed how we are going to carry it out and accelerated the campaign and shown up in our tactical reports that are coming in. but let's take one more this is , going to be rough here. go ahead, please. reporter: one more on afghanistan. general dunford, in your latest trip, were you able to additional -- a secure more commitment to putting more forces and the responsibility to expand into the counterterrorism realm? general dunford: i didn't get additional forces.

that will be decisions made by heads of states. and their parliaments. and president trump will be in brussels and will meet with his counterparts and start to see some commitments. my focus in dealing with my counterparts was to say if political decision makers decide on the 25 of may to increase the forces in afghanistan. we should be prepared to provide those as quickly as possible. the other point i discussed is that we actually have some the other point i discussed is that we actually have some unfulfilled requirements outstanding today. i encourage them to meet those requirements and they will all go back and look within their capability to do more in afghanistan. i was encouraged by the tone in brussels and around the room, i think it's fair to say 28-28 nations were committed to enduring presence in afghanistan and continued plan for security.

reporter: are you waiting for a signal --? [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2017] captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org >> today, live all the coverage of the maryland book festival starting at 10:00 p.m. eastern. maria on her book. at 10:35, melvin goodman.

sharon at 12:15 p.m. discussing her book. at 1:15 eastern, greg on "reagan rising". at two point 15 p.m., sidney blumenthal. at 3:15, sally freeman on the jersey brothers. watch our live of a coverage of the book festival starting today at 10:00 eastern. next, some of the topics discussed by kevin mccarthy and the minority whip on t